Operation Sunbeam - 1962 |Dominic II| Robert F. Kennedy observing Operation Sunbeam was a DOD sponsored series of four nuclear tests conducted at the United States's Nevada Test Site in 1962. Operation Sunbeam was a test of tactical nuclear warheads, four low-yield shots, three of which were near-surface detonations and one a tower shot. Operation Sunbeam (AKA Operation Dominic II) was conducted during the period of Operation Storax, but were not a part of Operation Storax. Even though it was organised, planned and conducted by the Nevada Test Site Organization (NTSO). The chief milestone of Operation Sunbeam was that it was the last nuclear test series at the Nevada Test Site conducted in the atmosphere by the United States. Since Operation Sunbeam, specifically the Little Feller 1 test, all US nuclear tests at the Test Site have been carried out underground in accordance with the Partial Test Ban Treaty. An estimated 3,000 DOD military and civilian personnel participated in Sunbeam either in Exercise Ivy Flats (held in conjunction with Little Feller I), or to provide technical or administrative support. Little Feller I and II were tests of the stockpile W-54 Davy Crockett warhead. The Davy Crockett was a tactical nuclear recoilless rifle with a range of 4km. One of the smallest nuclear weapons ever fielded, developed in late 1950s for use against Soviet troops in West Germany. The M-388 round used a W-54 warhead, a very small sub-kiloton fission device weighing about 23 kg, with a selectable yield of 10 or 20 tons. The shell's greatest effect would have been its extreme radiation hazard. Even at a low yield setting, the weapon would produce an almost instantly lethal radiation dosage. - Article on Davy Crocket The Tests Little Feller II - Little Feller II test involved the detonation of a stockpile Davy Crockett warhead intended as a companion shot for Little Feller I. The device was positioned 1m above the ground by a cable suspended between two posts. The plutonium warhead had a diameter of 71cm, a length of 40cm, and weighed 22.5kg. The top of the cloud resulting from the detonation reached 3.3km and moved to the north .. Johnie Boy - Sunbeam Johnie Boy - Johnie Boy was a surface test of the W-30 Mod 4 Y2 TADM (tactical atomic demolition munition) similar to Plumbbob Stokes, designed to explore sub-kiloton nuclear cratering. The device had a diameter of 56cm, a length of 118cm and weighed 197kg. Some venting was detected off site. Small Boy - Small Boy was a test of missile silo hardening principles, and to obtain information on the electromagnetic pulse produced by the burst and on weapons effects phenomena. The device was similar to those fired in Nougat Ermine, Chinchilla I/II, and Armadillo. The device diameter was 38cm, the length 39cm and weighed 29kg. The top of the cloud resulting from the detonation reached 5,800m and moved east-northeast. Small Boy was originally planned as the only detonation to be conducted on Operation Sunbeam. Little Feller I - Little Feller I was sponsored by the Department of Defense, and used a stockpile Davy Crockett tactical weapon, similar to Little .Feller II. The top of the cloud formed by the shot reached 3,353m and moved north-northwest. 1,000 DOD personnel took part in Exercise Ivy Flats which included an observer program and troop maneuvers. Five participants in the Ivy Flats maneuver task force launched the weapon from a recoilless rifle mounted on an armored personnel carrier. Little Feller I was the last atmospheric test at the NTS, and was observed by Robert F. Kennedy and and presidential adviser General Maxwell D. Taylor. Test Shots Video Name Yield Date |UTC| Type Warhead Location LAT/LONG - Little Feller II 22 tons 19:00 07/07/1962 Surface @1m W-54 NTS Area 18 37.12000 -116.30000 Johnnie Boy 500 tons 16:45 11/07/1962 Surface @-1m W-30 NTS Area 18 37.12240 -116.33300 - Small Boy 1.65 Kt 18:30 14/07/1962 Surface @3m W54 NTS Area 18 36.80000 -115.95000 Little Feller I 18 tons 17:00 17/07/1962 Surface @12m W54 NTS Area 18 37.11000 -116.31000 - DNA 3027F - Defense Nuclear Agency report - Dominic II / Little Feller II / Johnnie Boy / Small Boy / Little Feller I